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Clifton Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5

Summary

Clifton Elementary School is a public elementary school serving 373 students in grades PK-5 in Clifton, Colorado, which is part of the Mesa County Valley School District No. 51. However, the school consistently ranks in the bottom 25% of Colorado elementary schools, with very low academic performance compared to other schools in the state.

Clifton Elementary has seen a significant increase in Hispanic student enrollment, from 33.24% in 2022-2023 to 39.24% in 2020-2021, while the white student population has decreased. Additionally, the school has a very high percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 72.06% to 81.77% over the past 3 school years, which is much higher than the district and state averages. Despite having a relatively low student-teacher ratio, the school's academic performance is consistently well below the district and state averages across all grade levels and subject areas, with proficiency rates ranging from just 10.2% to 17% in math and 12.8% to 15.8% in English Language Arts.

Compared to nearby schools like Taylor Elementary School, Mesa View Elementary School, and Independence Academy, Clifton Elementary School faces significant academic challenges and widening achievement gaps, raising concerns about educational equity and the ability of the school to effectively serve its diverse student body.

346

Students ?

14.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,087

Per pupil spending ?

75.4%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3276 F Road
Clifton, CO 81520-7536

(970) 254-4760

District: Mesa County Valley School District No. 51

Racial breakdown:

White:

59.5%

Hispanic:

37.3%

Two or more races:

1.4%

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At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 29th percentile in 2014 → 5th in 2024

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Colorado average (14% vs 40% meeting standards)

!High chronic absenteeism (38% vs 28% Colorado)

!Ranking has slipped — down 24 percentile points since 2014

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school14%

District avg39%

Colorado avg40%

Not ranked this year

Clifton Elementary School did not have enough recent test-score data to be ranked. Check the trend below for past years.

40^th of 115Mesa County Valley School District No. 51 among Colorado districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2024	9.3	897 of 943	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	8.4	902 of 933	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	15.5	785 of 921	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.0	651 of 710	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	8.5	932 of 965	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.0	882 of 917	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	27.3	653 of 929	29.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	19.2	738 of 914	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	24.6	695 of 938	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	32.0	683 of 962	29.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	33.5	675 of 954	29.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	31.7	676 of 935	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	41.8	590 of 935	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2010	16.7	787 of 925	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	7.7	815 of 872	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	8.9	783 of 849	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	20.6	700 of 852	17.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	36.5	565 of 829	31.8%	★★☆☆☆
2005	19.7	685 of 823	16.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	16.8	690 of 808	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2022	8.3	578 of 594	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	5.8	689 of 693	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Colorado percentile	Rating
2022	4.9	450 of 454	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Male (2022)3rd percentile-12 vs school

White (2022)1st percentile-14 vs school

By subject vs Colorado (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts15%-30 vs state

Math12%-24 vs state

★

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Schools Near Clifton Elementary School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				CMAS English Language Arts (2025)							CMAS Math (2025)							CMAS Science (2025)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CMAS English Language Arts 3rd Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 4th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 5th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 6th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 7th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts 8th Grade	CMAS English Language Arts All Grades	CMAS Math 3rd Grade	CMAS Math 4th Grade	CMAS Math 5th Grade	CMAS Math 6th Grade	CMAS Math 7th Grade	CMAS Math 8th Grade	CMAS Math All Grades	CMAS Science 5th Grade	CMAS Science 8th Grade	Total
Clifton Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	3276 F Road	Clifton	81520	Mesa County	Mesa County Valley School District No. 51	No	No	No	Yes	(970) 254-4760	346	24	14.6	75.4%	206 (59.5%)	1 (0.3%)	129 (37.3%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.9%)	2 (0.6%)	5 (1.4%)								(n/a)	21.7						14.8			18.0				12.3			$16,087
Rocky Mountain Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	3260 D1/2 Road	Clifton	81520	Mesa County	Mesa County Valley School District No. 51	No	No	No	Yes	(970) 254-4900	395	29	13.6	79.5%	214 (54.2%)	2 (0.5%)	158 (40.0%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	18 (4.6%)	14.9	809^th of 950 public elementary schools	14.8%		10	884^th of 943 public elementary schools	6.3%	75	22.1	19.0	32.1				24.0	14.3	13.8	21.2				16.1	20.8		$15,933
Chatfield Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	3188 D1/2 Road	Grand Junction	81504	Mesa County	Mesa County Valley School District No. 51	No	No	No	Yes	(970) 254-4930	371	21	17.5	62.5%	240 (64.7%)	4 (1.1%)	110 (29.6%)	1 (0.3%)	5 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (3.0%)	57.8	386^th of 950 public elementary schools	59.4%		45.7	482^nd of 943 public elementary schools	48.9%	96	54.8	47.1	45.1				49.4	53.2	36.0	42.3				44.5	37.3		$14,981
Thunder Mountain Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	3063 F1/2 Road	Grand Junction	81504	Mesa County	Mesa County Valley School District No. 51	No	No	No	Yes	(970) 254-5870	432	27	16.2	54.4%	279 (64.6%)	5 (1.2%)	123 (28.5%)	9 (2.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	15 (3.5%)	27	643^rd of 950 public elementary schools	32.3%		18	768^th of 943 public elementary schools	18.6%	125	19.4	34.5	44.8				32.2	16.4	34.5	25.9				25.1	24.6		$15,156
Fruitvale Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	585 30 Road	Grand Junction	81504	Mesa County	Mesa County Valley School District No. 51	No	No	No	Yes	(970) 254-5930	358	28	13.0	70.1%	223 (62.3%)	1 (0.3%)	118 (33.0%)	3 (0.8%)	3 (0.8%)	1 (0.3%)	9 (2.5%)	27.2	642^nd of 950 public elementary schools	32.4%		24.7	679^th of 943 public elementary schools	28.0%	37	27.8	42.3	36.5				35.4	21.4	25.9	29.4				25.5	17.6		$15,860
Pear Park Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	432 30 1/4 Road	Grand Junction	81504	Mesa County	Mesa County Valley School District No. 51	No	No	No	Yes	(970) 254-5960	428	29	15.0	70.8%	267 (62.4%)	1 (0.2%)	149 (34.8%)	2 (0.5%)	5 (1.2%)	2 (0.5%)	2 (0.5%)	28.4	631^st of 950 public elementary schools	33.6%		22.9	698^th of 943 public elementary schools	26.0%	67	35.3	32.3	35.8				34.5	35.8	26.9	26.5				29.7	13.2		$15,654
Independence Academy	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	675 29 Rd	Grand Junction	81504	Mesa County	Mesa County Valley School District No. 51	Yes	No	No	No	(970) 254-6850	491	28	17.2	87.6%	414 (84.3%)	0 (0.0%)	60 (12.2%)	3 (0.6%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (2.4%)	54.2	413^th of 950 public elementary schools	56.5%		65.1	312^th of 943 public elementary schools	66.9%	101	47.2	36.0	56.9	49.1	59.6	44.7	49.2	49.1	12.0	49.0	29.1	33.3	31.9	34.2	56.9	42.6	$10,755
Nisley Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	543 28-3/4 Road	Grand Junction	81501	Mesa County	Mesa County Valley School District No. 51	No	No	No	Yes	(970) 254-5900	346	21	16.4	81.5%	185 (53.5%)	4 (1.2%)	134 (38.7%)	3 (0.9%)	4 (1.2%)	2 (0.6%)	14 (4.0%)	15	805^th of 950 public elementary schools	15.3%		10.1	879^th of 943 public elementary schools	6.8%	74	22.2	12.5	22.9				20.0	25.5	12.5	18.8				19.7	22.9		$16,166
Taylor Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	689 Brentwood Dr	Palisade	81526	Mesa County	Mesa County Valley School District No. 51	No	No	No	No	(970) 254-4870	310	19	16.5	42.6%	265 (85.5%)	0 (0.0%)	38 (12.3%)	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.6%)	1 (0.3%)	3 (1.0%)	76.8	212^th of 950 public elementary schools	77.7%		71	250^th of 943 public elementary schools	73.5%	38	51.0	61.4	63.3				58.7	53.1	54.4	55.1				54.2	57.1		$15,276
Mesa View Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2967 B Road	Grand Junction	81503	Mesa County	Mesa County Valley School District No. 51	No	No	No	Yes	(970) 254-7970	375	21	18.0	55.2%	273 (72.8%)	0 (0.0%)	82 (21.9%)	3 (0.8%)	5 (1.3%)	1 (0.3%)	11 (2.9%)	63	333^rd of 950 public elementary schools	64.9%		56.2	396^th of 943 public elementary schools	58.0%	63	55.8	39.7	66.0				52.3	55.8	36.5	45.7				44.7	48.9		$15,541

Frequently Asked Questions about Clifton Elementary School

How many students attend Clifton Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 346 students attended Clifton Elementary School.

What district is Clifton Elementary School in?

Mesa County Valley School District No. 51

What is the racial makeup of Clifton Elementary School?

Students at Clifton Elementary School are 60% White, 37% Hispanic, 1% Two or more races.

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Colorado Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.